Levamentum
by x-solitudeisabsolute
Summary: When Lightning loses someone precious to her, she immediately finds herself closing up to the world around her, both physically and mentally. After two weeks, and countless attempts on her friends to draw her out of the room she has locked herself away in, her friends begin to lose hope that she'll ever be able to heal from her loss. They turn to a certain prince in hopes to help.


"You know, you really should eat something . . ." Vanille began softly, emerald hues downcast to the crimson, plush carpet beneath her feet. When she received no response, she lifted her gaze up to look at the other female with determination edged in her body language. Sadly, the next words that would escape from her lips would be her mistake. "Serah wouldn't want—" her words abruptly stopped upon seeing the sharp glare from Lightning. She had crossed a line, accidently stabbing at a wound that hadn't even began to heal. It was quite evident that if Vanille continued any farther with her little speech, Lightning would probably strike her down on the spot. Vanille found herself unable to look away from her piercing gaze, staring at the young woman who she considered a friend with concern and even a hint of fear lacing her eyes.

Finally, after a long minute, Lightning broke the connection to turn her stare back to the nearby fireplace. It had died down long ago, now only small flecks of embers burned. The room had become chilly in the last few hours due to the lack of heat, but Lightning paid it little mind. She didn't feel cold, perhaps it was the shock, but she had felt numb since the moment the horrific news had been broken to her two weeks ago. It had been Snow who had told her what happened, her would-be-brother-in-law. Thoughts of denial had filled her head at the time; it wasn't real, just a nightmare, someone had gotten Serah's profile mixed up with someone else. Any excuse, no matter how absurd it was, entered her mind to deny her sister's death. At first, she had lashed out at Snow, both physically and verbally, telling him that it wasn't funny. When the man didn't resist, didn't argue back or try to defend himself, when crystal liquid pooled in his eyes and slipped down his face silently, Lightning knew.

They tried to spare Lightning of seeing the body but the woman refused. Some part of her brain would never believe Serah was dead unless she saw it with her own eyes. When they reluctantly agreed, after several arguments, and took Lightning down to the morgue, Lightning's heart shattered. Serah was pale and cold, her features were frozen in a peaceful facade, as though she were only sleeping. Even knowing the girl wouldn't open her eyes ever again, some part of Lightning still expected Serah to wake up and ask why everyone was so upset. In the end, Lightning hadn't shed a tear but the grief was clear in her eyes.

"Leave," Lightning said coldly as she came back to reality, not sparing another glance to the pig-tailed girl.

Vanille felt her eyes gloss with unshed tears and bit her lip before quickly turning to collect the tray of untouched food, making haste for exit to the hallway. Balancing the tray with one arm, she spoke a quick and weak "see you later", trying to feign a cheerful tone, and quietly shut the door before reclaiming her proper hold on the tray. They had to do something for Lightning. Serah wouldn't have wanted to see her like this. So, for Serah, for Lightning's sake and health, Vanille nodded to herself, coming to a resolve and rushed down the hall to find her friends.

Noctis Lucis Caelum found himself standing in front of a closed door. A clock from somewhere down the vacant, empty hallway chimed the midnight hour dully. He had received a call on his cellular device nearly five hours ago from Prompto — a rather good friend of his that most considered a bad influence — who informed him of Vanille's dilemma. Something involving Lightning but couldn't be given any other information due to the stares burning into his being by the men in the Council Room, including his own father's hardened gaze. Unfortunately, the Lucis heir had to cut the call short. The meeting had lasted a good few hours after that, so Noctis had decided to skip dinner with his father, who would surely scold him for it later considering he wished to discuss the events of the meeting, and met up with both Prompto and Gladiolus who were accompanied by a girl in pig-tails with green eyes. The prince couldn't remember her name, but he was quite sure she was one of Lightning's friends, since she had come with Serah during her visits from time-to-time and had been recently hanging around the palace. He listened intently while Vanille voiced her concerns, aiding with intel from Gladiolus.

Lightning — or rather, _Claire Farron_ — had recently suffered the loss of her younger sister, Serah. That news wasn't new. They had all learned of the her tragic death; it had happened the day Niflheim had broken the peace treaty and invaded Lucis to steal the Crystal. Serah could fight, surprisingly enough, and was capable of using a Bowsword. Appearance wise, she didn't seem to the type to throw herself in a battle but she if it involved protecting innocent lives, she didn't hesitate. Sadly, the Niflheim soldiers had over-powered her in the end and, after inflicting fatal injuries, they left her to die on the streets among other victims of the invasion. The only comforting thought was that Serah hadn't died alone. Snow, her fiancé, had found her just minutes later and she had died in his arms shortly after.

According to Gladiolus, Lightning hadn't shown up for training once in the past two weeks; not that she really needed it, in all honesty. But it appeared to be something she enjoyed. She served alongside Gladiolus when it came to acting as a shield for the royal family. It was painfully obvious that the idea of serving and protecting those of royal blood didn't sit well with her in the beginning. There was a lick of loathing in her cold gaze. Nonetheless, she had still gone through and did her job dutifully. It had been several months since Lightning had first come to work in the palace and from the looks of things, she seemed to have grown more comfortable living and working under the royal family. Still, Lightning never told anyone to address her by her true name. Noctis wasn't entirely sure why Lightning didn't like her real name and he was thankful that he never attempted to try calling her by it, considering the soldier had nearly taken Prompto's head off the first time he tried addressing her by it.

After learning of Serah's death, the king had graciously told Lightning to take however long she needed to grieve, but Noctis wondered if his father's words had even been heard since Lightning gave no recollection of hearing them at the time. Some part of him wondered if he could honestly do anything her friends hadn't already tried. Why would he be any different than any of them, who were obviously far closer to Lightning? He and Lightning weren't exactly friends but they were more than acquaintances. They could tolerate one another without issue and he felt oddly at ease in her presence. Still, doubt weighed heavily on his mind but he would push forward. The very least he could do was try. He owed her that much.

"Lightning?" he called gently after knocking and frowned when he got no response from inside. "I'm coming in." Curling fingers around the knob, Noctis gingerly turned it until he heard the click and slowly pushed it open, as if expecting a wild animal to lunge out and attack. The room was dimly lit, but it wasn't impossible to miss the figure sitting in the velvet-crimson recliner, staring blankly at the dark fireplace.

Mutely, Noctis made his way over to her and dropped to a knee before her chair, trying to study her features. Currently, she wore a blank mask void of emotion, but there was faint recollection hinting in her eyes. "Lightning, are you alright?"

"Fine," she muttered, eyes averting.

"Your friends have been rather worried about you. . ." he stated, frowning.

Lightning managed a weak scoff but no more.

After a long minute of dead silence, Noctis reached out to place a comforting hand on her knee. "Perhaps you should go out and talk with them—"

"Get out," Lightning said, her tone deadly calm but rendered with malice.

Noctis paused briefly, reading her expression, and understood his next words might be a death sentence yet took the chance anyway. "No."

"Damn it — I said get out!" she growled, slapping his hand away from her knee as if his touch burned her, and pushed herself back further into the chair. She almost wished it would swallow her up entirely; feeling cornered was not something she enjoyed, especially under his intense stare.

"Light—" he started, reaching cautiously for her again but this time, she moved in retaliation.

Lightning lunged forward, throwing her palms out and shoving the Prince back. As he stumbled backwards a few steps to regain his balance, she abandoned the chair and grabbed her gunblade leaning against the fireplace, swiftly aiming it at him. "Get. Out. I won't warn you again," she threatened darkly.

Noctis watched the scene before him with a weary expression. He took the moment to observe her features. Her clothes were somewhat wrinkled, her hair was a bit disheveled, but strangely enough, her eyes weren't red-rimmed or swollen. It was at that moment he realized Lightning hadn't cried. For whatever reason, Lightning hadn't shed any tears for her younger sister. Noctis knew Lightning wasn't a heartless person, no matter how blunt her words were or what kind of mask she wore. She was strong, both physically and mentally, and perhaps a bit on the stubborn side, but not heartless. So it came off as rather strange to him that she hadn't cried for the person whom had meant the most in her life, even behind closed doors and away from prying eyes.

Noctis hadn't known Serah very well. They had exchanged pleasantries, a few short conversations, when she would drop by to visit Lightning, but his schedule had always appeared to have him rather busy whenever the younger pinkette drop by to see her sister. Serah had mentioned once that they should all find time to spend together to get to know one another better—something they wouldn't be able to do with her now. But there had been no denying the tiny spark of joy he noticed in Lightning's eyes when she saw her sister, nor the hint of a smile that would briefly grace her lips. The woman was truly happy — though she made a good front to hide it at times — when her sister paid a visit, no matter how long or short it was. He didn't know much of their history, just that their parents had died when they were younger, marking them as orphans and leaving Lightning to take care of Serah by herself.

"Lightning," he tried again, taking a small cautious step towards her.

The gunblade trembled slightly in her grip and she mentally cursed herself for showing a sign of weakness, locking her elbow in hopes to stop it before his eyes caught sight of it.

However, Noctis saw the hesitation in her furious gaze and continued forward at a slow pace. After a few tense moments, he bypassed the blade and came to a stop with only a foot of breathing space between them. She remained unflinching, unmoving. A hint of confusion crossed her features, as though she wasn't exactly how to handle the sudden turn in the situation.

Hesitantly, he reached out and wrapped his arms around her. Lightning didn't appear to be a person who was touched without approval, so he was partially afraid she might try and end his existence right then and there. But she didn't. She didn't even try to shove him away. Her arms hung limply at her sides as the gunblade dropped softly to the floor.

"She was my little sister. . . It was my job to watch out for he—" Lightning's voice cracked and she closed her mouth, pressing her face into the firm fabric of his suit, trying to swallow the lump that had lodge itself in her throat. "I couldn't. . . I couldn't protect her — at a time when she needed me the most!"

Noctis felt his jaw lock behind closed lips and his embrace automatically tightened around her. Within a matter of seconds, the young woman finally broke. Her body trembled with silent sobs as glistening tears began to dampen the heir's attire. This wasn't the Lightning he had come to know and — _dare he say_ — it tore at his heart to see her so fragile. All this time, there had been a war going on in Lightning, inner conflict with herself, yet she had secluded herself from everyone that tried to help and offered a shoulder to lean on. And all this time, she was trying to punish herself. For something she had had no control over, for something that wasn't her fault.

Absentmindedly, he found himself tenderly stroking the back of her head, remaining silent. The Lucis heir never found himself quite good with expressing himself through words but it wouldn't have mattered even if he had been an expert in it. Nothing would bring Serah back and it would take a long time for the hole in Lightning's heart to heal. So for now, he held her until she could pull herself together again.

Sometime later, the two found themselves parted. Lightning back in her chair, watching as Noctis focused on relighting the fire. She had dried the last of tears minutes prior and utter silence wedge its way between them again. Finally, Lightning spoke.

"Noctis?"

"Hm?"

"Tell anyone about this and Lucis will beneeding a new heir for the throne." While her features were serious, there was an undertone of teasing within her voice, something the prince barely caught.

Noctis glanced over his shoulder at her with a faint yet warm smile. "My lips are sealed."


End file.
